Siemens is technology leader with "energy
highways"

Dec 16, 2009 - Energy Central

Siemens
Energy has advanced to technology leader in the field of high-efficiency, environmentally
friendly transmission of large amounts of electrical energy. At the end of the
year, the company will be putting into operation a high-voltage direct current
transmission link (HVDC) in China. With a transmission capacity of 5000 megawatts
(MW) und covering a distance of more than 1400 kilometers this HVDC system recently
is the world’s most powerful of its kind implemented. Siemens will also be commissioning
the world’s largest and highest-capacity 800-kilovolt HVDC transformer in China
in mid-January 2010. This transformer is intended for the next even larger HVDC
transmission system in China, which at 6400 megawatts (MW) will transport power
equivalent to that supplied by 12 average-size coal-fired power plants over a
distance of 2000 kilometers. “Our technology leadership offers a good starting
basis to become the clear No. 1 on the global market for HVDC”, stated Udo Niehage,
CEO of the Power Transmission Division in the Siemens Energy Sector. The global
market for HVDC transmission currently has a volume of about EUR3 billion, with
average growth of more than ten percent annually. The volume is expected to climb
to EUR5 to EUR8 billion by 2020, of which Siemens will have a significant share.

Highest-capacity HVDC transmission systems as in China will help us in the future
in transporting large volumes of environmentally friendly electricity from the
desert for example to Europe, as planned with the Desertec project. “In the future,
electricity highways will not only cross borders, they will also connect entire
continents with each other”, stated Niehage. “We will only be able to counter
climate change by making more intensive use of energy-efficient technologies.
We have to develop renewable energies and convert our power supply systems into
smart grids so that we can manage the fluctuating amounts of electricity fed into
the grid intelligently. Substantial investments will be necessary for this. However,
this will be unavoidable if we are to achieve our climate protection targets and
significantly reduce CO2 emission,” adds Niehage.

With their
innovative power electronics and ability to control the amount of power to be
transmitted intelligently, HVDC systems are an important element of a smart grid.
Siemens Energy is one the world’s leading suppliers in this area too and will
further expand this position. The Siemens Sector expects orders for smart grids
totaling more than EUR6 billion through the year 2014. “As global market leader
in grid automation, we are already well established in this business. We’re at
the beginning of a new era of electricity with smart grids,” commented Niehage.
In the last fiscal year 2009, Siemens earned revenues of nearly EUR1 billion with
smart grid technologies. “The smart grid market will also become increasingly
dynamic as a result of climate change and programs to boost the economy. Our aim
is to grow more than twice as fast the market as a whole,” Niehage added. The
addressable market for Siemens will have a cumulative volume of about EUR30 billion
through the year 2014. Siemens is targeting annual growth of seven percent in
smart grid business and a market share of more than 20 percent.

The
energy-efficient connection of offshore wind farms to the power supply grid, high-voltage
direct current (HVDC) transmission systems and solutions for setting up smart
grids are part of Siemens’ Environmental Portfolio. In fiscal 2009, revenue from
the Portfolio totaled about EUR23 billion, making Siemens the world’s largest
supplier of ecofriendly technologies. In the same period, our products and solutions
enabled customers to reduce their CO2 emissions by 210 million tons.

For
more information about Siemens Energy Sector go to www.siemens.com/energy http://www.siemens.com/energy/events/smartgrid

The Siemens Energy Sector is the world’s leading supplier
of a complete spectrum of products, services and solutions for the generation,
transmission and distribution of power and for the extraction, conversion and
transport of oil and gas. In fiscal 2009 (ended September 30), the Energy Sector
had revenues of approximately EUR25.8 billion and received new orders totaling
approximately EUR30 billion and posted a profit of EUR3.3 billion. On September
30, 2009, the Energy Sector had a work force of more than 85,100. Further information
is available at: www.siemens.com/energy.